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He needs to maintain his skills/lincence by clocking hours in the same aircraft as the licence is for, obviously.The government's airplane is (was) a Fokker 70, the PH-KBX (it was recently sold), and the older KLM Cityhopper planes were also Fokker 70s. These are now replaced by Embraers. I'm not sure if you can fly these Embraers with the Fokker licence, but as it happens, WAX decided some time ago he wanted bigger, better, cooler, faster, and started working on his 737 licence. Of course KLM is happy to provide the good lad with the opportunity to clock his practice hours + maintenance hours.

How big a coincidence then, that the government (after a looooong process, caused by the need for less refuelling stops on intercontinental trips and a plane that could reach the Antilles non-stop) decided to purchase a Boeing 737, for the hefty sum op 89 million euros?!

The alternative, IIRC an Airbus (European....), would have cost about 18 million euros less. And here's the fun part: authorities deny and deny again that the fact that Wax is practicing for a licence in, oh, what number Boeing was that again, has anything to do with the decision.

According to their own website, the active KLM fleet is currently 118 aircraft, thereof only 13 are Airbus. They have 50 Boeing 737 on duty. All their Fokkers are reported off duty.I cannot imagine that the governments decision to buy a 737 was made solely to allow Wax to fly the government plane, as he would certainly not be able to pile up the necessary flight hours for maintaining his (not yet available) license just by flying the government plane from time to time?

In turn, as KLM no longer flies Fokkers, his last change to fly a Fokker was indeed the current goverment plane, which will go off duty when the 737 comes.

He needs to maintain his skills/lincence by clocking hours in the same aircraft as the licence is for, obviously.The government's airplane is (was) a Fokker 70, the PH-KBX (it was recently sold), and the older KLM Cityhopper planes were also Fokker 70s. These are now replaced by Embraers. I'm not sure if you can fly these Embraers with the Fokker licence, but as it happens, WAX decided some time ago he wanted bigger, better, cooler, faster, and started working on his 737 licence. Of course KLM is happy to provide the good lad with the opportunity to clock his practice hours + maintenance hours.

How big a coincidence then, that the government (after a looooong process, caused by the need for less refuelling stops on intercontinental trips and a plane that could reach the Antilles non-stop) decided to purchase a Boeing 737, for the hefty sum op 89 million euros?!

The alternative, IIRC an Airbus (European....), would have cost about 18 million euros less. And here's the fun part: authorities deny and deny again that the fact that Wax is practicing for a licence in, oh, what number Boeing was that again, has anything to do with the decision.

According to their own website, the active KLM fleet is currently 118 aircraft, thereof only 13 are Airbus. They have 50 Boeing 737 on duty. All their Fokkers are reported off duty.I cannot imagine that the governments decision to buy a 737 was made solely to allow Wax to fly the government plane, as he would certainly not be able to pile up the necessary flight hours for maintaining his (not yet available) license just by flying the government plane from time to time?

In turn, as KLM no longer flies Fokkers, his last change to fly a Fokker was indeed the current goverment plane, which will go off duty when the 737 comes.

I also understood it was the fact that the government decided to go with an 737 that made him train for that license, not the other way around. If you add the fact that KLM has lots of 737's it makes even more sense to get that license. If he wants to keep his part-time pilot job it makes sense to get a license for a 737.

There are several things where I blame him for (greek fence/mozambique villa) but this isn't one of them.

Members of Parliament have already asked the Minister of Infrastructure and the Environment to give proper explanation on why the Airbus could not compete in the tender and Boeing could. She only mentioned in her press release that the Airbus bid was invalid but did not specify why.

Well he flies when he has time and when he wants to. It is a bit like William. Not only is a fully trained pilot standing by, in case Willem can't/won't make it, but also there is a pilot deadheading on board. At least that used to be like that, and I doubt this has changed.

Logged

Mary's life motto:"if I had the choice between world peace and a Prada handbag, I'd choose the latter one" Marian Keyes.

My husband being a professional pilot I can assure you: there's always a second pilot on board, in his case the actual captain. The king is co-pilot and as such under the order of the captain. And there is always a pilot on standby, because it can happen to any pilot that he can't make it. And the king must be a fully trained pilot himself, otherwise the flight regulations would not let him co-pilot a passenger plane. He has a licence, and therefore is as good as any other pilot KLM has. He just does not need the money...

But if he should get sacked as a king, at least he has something to fall back on to support his family....

I think it's very special that he does that, and to know that Wilhelmina and Juliana went by incognito reservations Countess van Buren. I learned something new today, and I really like WA and the Dutch royals back to Wilhelmina and I don't know much before her.